Sharing the sad news on social media, the band wrote: "There is no easy way to say this…our mighty, noble friend Lemmy passed away today after a short battle with an extremely aggressive cancer.

"He had learnt of the disease on December 26th, and was at home, sitting in front of his favorite video game from The Rainbow which had recently made it’s way down the street, with his family. (sic)"

The band added: "We cannot begin to express our shock and sadness, there aren’t words.

"We will say more in the coming days, but for now, please…play Motörhead loud, play Hawkwind loud, play Lemmy’s music LOUD.

"Have a drink or few. Share stories. Celebrate the LIFE this lovely, wonderful man celebrated so vibrantly himself.

"HE WOULD WANT EXACTLY THAT."

Motorhead pop group leather jackets

Black Sabbath frontman Ozzy Osbourne said: “Lost one of my best friends, Lemmy, today. He will be sadly missed. He was a warrior and a legend. I will see you on the other side.”

Lemmy’s outlandish behavior was a key to his icon status.

Ian Fraser “Lemmy” Kilmister was born Staffordshire, England in 1945. Inspired to become a musician after seeing The Beatles perform in concert, Lemmy spent his 20s playing in a variety of bands, and also served as a roadie in the Jimi Hendrix Experience.

In 1972, he was hired to play bass in the UK space rock group Hawkwind, despite having no previous experience on the instrument.

He quickly honed his skills, helping shape the band’s sound on critically acclaimed albums such Space Ritual, while also signing lead vocals on the song “Silver Machine”, which peaked at No. 3 on the UK charts.

Lemmy was lead vocalist, bassist, principal songwriter and the founding, and the only constant member of Motörhead since the band’s formation in 1975.

To date, Motörhead have released twenty studio albums and achieved 30 million in sales worldwide.

The British musician was a member of Hawkwind from 1972 to 1975 before founding heavy metal band Motorhead. The band’s biggest hit was “Ace of Spades” in 1980.